


An Extremely Informal Text on Handsome Jack

by Voidromeda



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Analysis, Character Analysis, Meta
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:47:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27186106
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Voidromeda/pseuds/Voidromeda
Summary: A very informal and unprofessional, perhaps disorganized essay and analysis of Handsome Jack and his iterations.
Kudos: 3





	An Extremely Informal Text on Handsome Jack

**Author's Note:**

> This was copy pasted from my Pillowfort. This is a meta analysis and look at Handsome Jack and the way he changes throughout each game. This was written before Borderlands 3 was published. Thank you for reading.

**Background:**

As the title denotes, this is my long-winded take and look into the character of Handsome Jack from the Borderlands series. This is something I toyed with after replaying all of Borderlands 2 in its entirety.

I’ve also always found the discrepancies between all of the games in their treatment of Handsome Jack fascinating, and a small talk with my friend on my Twitter sparked this desire to write this, though the other reason as to why I wrote this is simply to get used to typing on my tablet.

The reason as to why I’m doing this background despite there already being a preface in the text is simply to speak about my own experiences and to what triggered the creation of this text.

The word count of this text is roughly 4300 words, minus the background and content headings.

**Content:**

Please use this to ctrl+f/cmd+f and shortcut to the topics you’re interested in. Bold are the ones where I talk about Handsome Jack’s character.

  * Preface
  * The Progenitor of the Series, Borderlands 1
  * The Sequel and Popularisation of the Series, Borderlands 2
  * The Black Sheep of the Series, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel
  * The Arguably Best-Written but Jankiest of the Series, Tales from the Borderlands
  * **Aside: The Characterization in Borderlands 1**
  * **The Characterization in Borderlands 2**
  * **The Characterization in Borderlands: the Pre-Sequel**
  * **The Characterization in Tales from the Borderlands**
  * Overall



**_Disclaimer:_ **

The following text deals with issues regarding intense child abuse and other dark themes, such as murder and implied torture. Reader discretion is advised.

* * *

**_Preface_ **

* * *

****

Handsome Jack is one of the more well-known, but not by much in the grand scheme of fictional characters, villains in video game canon. Considered one of the more charismatic (if not the most charismatic) characters and villains of the _Borderlands_ franchise by Gearbox and 2K, Handsome Jack is the character who marks a paradigm shift of the _Borderlands_ series in terms of plot presentation.

Following his appearance in _Borderlands 2,_ Handsome Jack marks the introduction of an overarching story within _Borderlands 2_ until _Borderlands 3,_ with _Borderlands: The Pre-sequel_ working as a prequel/in-between of _Borderlands_ and _Borderlands 2,_ and a sequel to _Borderlands 2_ to set up _Borderlands 3_ and, by coincidence, _Tales from the Borderlands._

Though the focus of this _**informal**_ text is not the radical change in story-writing from _Borderlands_ to _Borderlands 2,_ nor will it be an analysis of the plot as a whole of each of the available games but rather on the inconsistent characterization of the main driving-force behind both plot and popularity: Handsome Jack. Though a rather polarizing character, it is inarguable that the main thrust of the popularity is because of Handsome Jack… though the biggest inconsistent writing in the games can also be burdened onto him.

As a result of this, however, this text makes an extremely explicit assumption that the reader has played through and experienced all of the games available - including _Borderlands 1._ This text will not explain key plot points nor will it give a detailed mapping of the plot twists, beginning, middle and end, or of the character arcs in the game. Extra-characters, those that will have to be paid for, will be treated as canonical characters as well.

The point of this text is to focus on personal interpretations of Handsome Jack - this is not meant to be academic nor formal in any way, shape, or form. I will not be replaying the games and hunting down the EchoLogs, though I will refer to the Borderlands Wiki for only one instance of the EchoLogs which is the optional side mission _Get To Know Jack._ Despite this, I will still do my best to summarize Handsome Jack’s appearances in all of the games.

To begin, an introduction of Handsome Jack’s roles in each of the games as well as a summarization of them. If you wish to skip these, please search for the sentences “The Characterization in Borderlands 2/Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel/Tales from the Borderlands”, replacing the game title as necessary.

* * *

_**The Progenitor of the Series, Borderlands 1,** _

* * *

A revolutionary game at the time of its release and extremely dated now with the existence of _Borderlands 2, Borderlands_ is a game mostly lauded for its gameplay and not at all for its lacklustre and barely noticeable story. 

Though the game does have a story, it does not get the same level of detail and attention as the gameplay progression of the story. As it is an experimental beginning of the series, the game is bumpy and has mechanics thrown away or reworked and entire plot points rewritten, retconned, and changed for the sequel.

However, Handsome Jack does not appear in the game. Angel’s origins are rooted within _Borderlands 1_ unlike Handsome Jack, with her story being completely retconned from her being a satellite AI for Hyperion into the abused child of Handsome Jack in the sequel.

The initial intention with the reveal of Angel being the AI for Hyperion is a result of uncertainty; Hyperion, revealing to be the puppetmaster in _Borderlands 2,_ is originally only a suggestion within the first game as the writer at the time admits his uncertainty of the direction he wishes to go with the game. 

Though the writer of _Borderlands 1_ changes in _Borderlands 2,_ and then later on _Borderlands: the Pre-Sequel_ and then later on _Tales from the Borderlands._ There is a trend of writers changing. Keep note of that.

As mentioned prior, Handsome Jack does not exist within the actual _Borderlands 1_ lore, and Angel is not a human within that game either. 

In _Borderlands 2,_ it is retconned that he is the one who planned the original Vault Hunters arrival within Fyrestone but is unable to be heard due to being stopped by the then CEO, Harold Tassiter (last name given in _Borderlands 2_ , first name in _The Pre-Sequel_ ).

* * *

_**The Sequel and Popularisation of the Series, Borderlands 2** _

* * *

Known as the one that brought _Borderlands_ franchise to the mainstream, though not entirely, the _Borderlands 2_ game is considered a step-up entirely from its originator. The gameplay is improved, the story is better written, and there are better introduction to boss enemies and plot points.

Following the higher-budget release is the increase in voice acting. With the increase of voice acted lines are more frequent EchoLogs throughout the story, which allows the player character (shortened to PC) to feel less isolated from the non-playable characters (shortened to NPC) and the world.

Following the originator is, as well, a massive upgrade in the graphics and gameplay loop, with better downloadable content (shortened to DLC) and endgame material.

Handsome Jack features prominently in this game. Appearing in several trailers for the game [in both voice-over and animation] as well as becoming the main face, Handsome Jack is one of the most memorable characters in the game series, to the point that he still gets use, characterization, and plot relevance even after his death at the end of the game.

He is the main antagonist and the one who speaks to the PC throughout the entire game and attempts to endear himself while also making the PC hate him.

* * *

_**The Black Sheep of the Series, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel** _

* * *

Developed by 2K Australia instead of the normal 2K itself, _The Pre-sequel_ is the black sheep of the series. It goes back to some of its roots in _Borderlands 1_ by changing damage, health and shield numbersbut also adds in new game mechanics that are either hated or liked by players.

Criticized for not necessarily adding anything new, _The Pre-Sequel’s_ main goal is not to establish new gameplay loops (though some argued that the loop devolved) but rather to establish a branching point between _Borderlands 1_ and _2_ and _3,_ and later on - by sheer coincidence - _Tales from the Borderlands._

The other issue that _The Pre-Sequel_ has is attempting to characterise Handsome Jack prior to becoming a CEO dictator.

Saddled with an extremely difficult task, the 2K Australia team has to struggle with showing Handsome Jack’s descent into madness while attempting to portray him as sympathetic and hilarious, the latter being the focal point of his character in his original appearance in _Borderlands 2_ and the former not applicable. 

The story is considered inferior to _Borderlands 2_ and, due to its lack of success, _the Pre-Sequel_ is unable to get much traction and releases only one DLC with others being cancelled. 2K Australia disbands soon after.

Handsome Jack’s role within the game is that he is a “tragic hero” protagonist as seen through the point-of-view of Athena, a recurring character from _Borderlands 1_ DLCwho appears in _The Pre-Sequel_ as a PC and its narrator and in _Tales from the Borderlands_ as an NPC. Handsome Jack’s character is softened in _The Pre-Sequel._ More details on this later.

* * *

_**The Arguably Best-Written but Jankiest of the Series, Tales from the Borderlands** _

* * *

Published not by 2K, _Tales from the Borderlands_ is the child of Gearbox and the now defunct TellTale Games, who are known for making dialogue-heavy, decision-based, and simplified adventure games.

Considered as one of the better TellTale Games as well as _The Wolf Among Us_ and the original season of _The Walking Dead Game,_ the game is a sequel to all of the prior games and works as a branching point to _Borderlands 3._ Though not the main protagonist of the game, Handsome Jack exists as a combined main-character with the protagonist Rhys and serves later on as antagonist to Rhys and deuteragonist Fiona.

Handsome Jack’s role within the game is to present an alternate route to Rhys: he is the dark-learning grey moral route of _Tales from the Borderlands,_ where Rhys will have to struggle with placing his trust in Handsome Jack while keeping him hidden from the rest of the cast - especially Athena, in contrast to Fiona’s route where Rhys will place his trust in the deuteragonist and her allies more than he will in Handsome Jack, and may even confide about Jack’s appearance to her.

He suffers a second death as a result of this game, as well as softening his character up - though not as much as _The Pre-Sequel._ More details on this later.

Now that summarization of all of the _Borderlands_ games are present, it is time to focus on the characterization of Handsome Jack throughout.

* * *

_**Aside: The Characterization in Borderlands 1** _

* * *

Even though I say that he has no appearance in _Borderlands 1, Borderlands 2_ makes a pointed effort to retcon it so that Handsome Jack is the cause of _Borderlands 1’s_ plot. For that sake, this is only an aside and not an in-depth look.

Handsome Jack is still not yet Handsome Jack in this retconning. Though the game is post him abusing and isolating his daughter [and still doing it], Handsome Jack is still a normal programmer and is not yet rising to power. 

His character is that of a unwillingly obedient programmer in the face of his company’s rules. Later on, he strangles Harold Tassiter and takes his place as CEO after his success on Pandora.

Though ambiguous, he does seem to have a mask on throughout the _Get to Know Jack_ EchoLogs though it is not explained as to why he wears a mask or how he gets his scar in them.

* * *

_**The Characterization in Borderlands 2** _

* * *

The main meat of Handsome Jack’s characterization lies within _Borderlands 2._ His basic characterization can be summarised as “fascist with superiority/hero complex who thinks himself as the protagonist and everyone else the antagonist of the story.” His personality is immediately set in the intro cutscene of _Borderlands 2_ with the line (paraphrased), “You may think you’re the hero of the story but you’re not!”, Handsome Jack is the main driving force for the story and the characters.

With his drilling of the planet for Eridium causing severe changes to the land and massacre of several bandit settlements in Pandora, Handsome Jack is already set to work even prior to the PCs appearing in the game.

Handsome Jack already exists as a villain of the game for a few years, with him recruiting and hiring “Hunters” only so that he may take advantage of their work and then later kill them - hence the appearance of the PCs and their subsequent train crash. 

Throughout the game, he antagonizes you on the EchoLogs and proceeds to deride and insult you, while also being the biggest and main source of humour in the game. Appearing as goofy and light-hearted at first and as someone who leaves most of the basic killing to his grunts, Handsome Jack is quick to escalate within the main story to reveal his heinous and despicable personality.

He is a ruthless and uncaring murderer who wishes to wipe Pandora clean for his own slate and is an oppressive CEO whose rules and regulations act as a dictatorship. The key point to take away from this game is that Handsome Jack’s character is irrevocably set in stone: he is a homicidal, narcissistic abuser with little regard for the life around him.

He is homicidal and power-hungry, and rejects all forms of criticism on his person and only cares for what he has to say and is quick to kill another person if they so-far as breathe wrong.

Throughout the game, there are side missions that reveal that he will also engage in human experimentation and essentially lobotomization through the use of his Eridium to understand its capabilities. All human [and animal] life, except for his own, are not even quaternary to his goal of “opening the Vault and controlling the Warrior.”

His relationships in the game reveal him to be cold and distant as well, even if there are not many; he is more than willing to sabotage Wilhelm despite the aforementioned character having been his obedient bodyguard for years upon years, and he is also almost unresponsive to the death of his girlfriend Nisha.

His relationship with Nisha in _Borderlands 2_ is ultimately bare-bones and she exists only to reveal that Handsome Jack views those close to him as “objects of his belongings.” Her relationship with Handsome Jack is implied to be built upon lust and arousal instead of actual romance. More details on this in _The Pre-Sequel_ , with brief mention in _Tales from the Borderlands._

A theme of “ownership” can be seen in his brief relationship with Mad Moxxi as well, where he “steals” her away from Mordecai and then proceeds to destroy her belongings (her arena in _Borderlands 1_ ) after she breaks up with him. 

This reveals Handsome Jack as extremely possessive and vindictive, and shows a common thread of him not caring for his partners (whether in work or sex/romance) beyond seeing them as “objects that belong to him.”

Simply for the sake of mentioning it and having a complete set of his relationships, he also has a grandmother on Pandora - now dead thanks to him - that is his abuser, as she abuses him in the past using a buzzaxe. 

For reference, the buzzaxe is the weapon that the Psychos - the main inhabitants and enemies of Pandora - use for combat. His parents will be labelled as “unknown” for _Borderlands 2_ and mentioned in _The Pre-Sequel._

The only relationship he cares for is that of him and his daughter’s, though argument can and will be made that it is mainly for the sake of him wanting a battery charger for his Vault Key and her being his daughter is almost secondary. 

_Get to Know Jack_ implies an isolation and physical abuse of Angel which happens far before the events of _Borderlands 1_ , as well as a dehumanization of her for the sake of his goals post his success in _Borderlands 1_.

Angel in _Get to Know Jack_ is treated to verbal abuse and isolation from the rest of the world since her accidental murder of her mother thanks to her newfound and abrupt Siren powers. 

She also has to be physically forced into a chair, which is implied where she resides for most if not all of her life, and also repeatedly physically restrained due to her inability to cope with her powers - which are referred to as malfunctions.

Handsome Jack is, unavoidably and inherently, an abuser to his daughter; this is a fact that is explicit and thoroughly indicated and explored in _Borderlands 2,_ where Angel is in repeated pain and often punished for trying to talk to and help the PC. 

This is also reflected in the curt way that Angel speaks to Handsome Jack in the EchoLogs, and mostly talks to him with a disconnect between him and her.

The PC ultimately euthanizes Angel before Handsome Jack, taking away the main source of his “battery” for the Vault Key. The death of his daughter then causes a change in Handsome Jack’s demeanour; he no longer makes jokes or playfully yet seriously insults the PCs. Instead, he is shown to become far more serious and spiteful of the PC, and begins to talk to them less and less as the game progresses past Angel’s euthanization.

 _Borderlands 2’s_ writing makes it clear that Handsome Jack is irreversibly a despicable human being; if not through his mass-murdering and massacres, then through his callous abuse of Angel, his human experimentation, his kidnapping and experimentation on Bloodwing, and then his subsequent display of said animal’s corpse in one of his major settlements being developed on Pandora. 

Though the only “softness” to his personality is his humour, the game never once tries to imply that Handsome Jack is good or is capable of redemption. His ultimate punishment is his main fear, which is the Warrior being beaten by the PCs and he, himself, murdered at the hands of the “filthy bandits.”

* * *

_**The Characterization in Borderlands: the Pre-Sequel** _

* * *

Let’s backtrack. Actually, let’s both backtrack and head forward to the sequel. _The Pre-Sequel,_ which as shown is both aptly and absurdly named, is the game in which Handsome Jack’s characterization becomes the most bizarre. 

Aspects of his personality are still retained, especially his humour and his narcissism, though the second aspect is played for laughs and comedic purposes than an actual motivator for most of his actions.

As well, there is a sudden and radical shift in Handsome Jack’s role as a character: he is no longer the antagonist but the protagonist that the PCs are to root for and assist. For the sake of differentiation, I will be referring to _the Pre-Sequel_ Jack as “Programmer Jack”.

 _The Pre-Sequel_ provides, or rather attempts to, an explanation for how Programmer Jack turns into Handsome Jack. It also attempts to explain how it is that he comes into contact with Wilhelm and Nisha, and to try and explain his hatred of Claptrap Units. T

he other explanation and main reasoning given for Handsome Jack’s scar is that Lilith is the ultimate cause of it through Deus Ex Machina.

In an attempt, however, to try and turn Handsome Jack into Programmer Jack, the protagonist, certain aspects of his character and past have to be retconned. The main retcon is the mask present throughout all of _Borderlands 2_ and the scar on his face that is revealed to the PC after they kill him. 

Instead, Programmer Jack has a normal face - deliberately drawn as him smiling and happy versus Handsome Jack’s neutral expression - with no mask and scar to show for it.

The other retcon is his relationship with Angel. _The Pre-Sequel_ goes through great lengths to not have Angel appear in the game except for optional EchoLogs. In her appearances in the EchoLogs, _The Pre-Sequel_ has her sound happier and more informal versus her tone of voice in _Borderlands 2_ to try and imply a more normal and familial relationship between her and Programmer Jack.

Though Angel still speaks factually to Programmer Jack, the tone and atmosphere of her conversations with Programmer Jack is different from Handsome Jack.

Any mention of his abuse and isolation of Angel is largely unknown or unmentioned, or even perhaps written out of the canon entirely or shifted to become present at the end of _The Pre-Sequel_ and set on the events leading up to _Borderlands 2._

Programmer Jack is shown to be more human and emotional than Handsome Jack; whereas Handsome Jack’s introduction is the train explosion in the form of a dummy puppet and is meant to establish his hero complex, Programmer Jack’s introduction is the form of him in distress and under attack of Dahl soldiers to try and appeal him to the PCs as an “every man” who is biting off more than he can chew.

He is ultimately portrayed as harmless and unwilling to murder people unless absolutely necessary, shown in his murder of the mayor in self-defense who tries to kill him after he asks said mayor a few questions.

The game attempts to paint Programmer Jack’s enjoyment of the adrenaline rush after the murder as a red flag, though that attempt falls flat if the PC remembers that everyone in Elpis and Pandora love to murder people, including some of the Vault Hunters who treat murder as a sport and some of the NPCs who shrug off murder that doesn’t affect them.

The DLC character Aurelia is also essentially a female Handsome Jack, though that ends up being counter-intuitive as she thinks that Programmer Jack is “evil” by the end of the game despite an idle line revealing that she successfully kills an entire planet’s occupation due to negligence.

The other attempt of a red flag is when a Dahl war AI suddenly and abruptly has a heel turn and starts hating the fact that she is a war AI and that she has to murder people, and the PC is meant to feel guilty for the AI even though the lives of the entire moon is at stake. Programmer Jack is blase about the AI’s distress and prioritizes Elpis over the AI.

Ultimately, Programmer Jack can be seen as the “nicer” version of Handsome Jack - he is goofier, more harmless, at times helpless, and seems to genuinely care about the people on Elpis and fears for their safety thanks to Dahl’s meddling. His desire to find the Vault also stems from Zarpedon attempting to keep it a secret and a thirst for knowledge.

His relationships in _the Pre-Sequel_ are also still developing; Programmer Jack’s response to Wilhelm is that of fascination and a want to have him as a bodyguard, to Claptrap a growing hatred, and Nisha a romantic disinterest but sexual attraction. Due to the make of the game, most of the interactions between him and Nisha show equality - though only in that they are both interested in each other sexually, and that Programmer Jack does not see Nisha as an object to own and keep.

His abuse at the hands of his grandmother is still mentioned, and the game implies his mother is negligent in that she gives Programmer Jack over to her grandmother before bailing on him. He also has a stalker in the form of Nakayama, a character that is introduced and dies only in DLC in _Borderlands 2_ , who creates the Holo-Jack that will then be reused in _Tales from the Borderlands._

The end of _the Pre-Sequel_ states that Lilith punching the Vault symbol into Programmer Jack and thus severing his connection to the Vault and severely physically scarring him, as well as the dark choices he makes throughout the game, is the downfall of Programmer into Handsome Jack and, thus, a tragic hero made villain.

* * *

_**The Characterization in Tales from the Borderlands** _

* * *

This section will be kept deliberately brief. The Handsome Jack in this game is, plainly said, an interpretation of Handsome Jack by his stalker - Nakayama - who is in love with him. The Holo Jack in _the Pre-Sequel_ makes a return here, though it is in the form of an AI projection being plugged into the machinations in Rhys’ brain where he can only be witnessed and seen by Rhys.

In _Tales from the Borderlands,_ some of Handsome Jack’s characteristics make a return. He is murderous, narcissistic, humorous, and - most relevant - abusive. He is also shown to be possessive of Rhys in his route in _Tales from the Borderlands,_ falling in line with how he views his relationships in _Borderlands 2,_ though he is also shown to be more emotional similar to his incarnation in _The Pre-Sequel._

He develops a camaraderie with Rhys in his route that ultimately results in him wanting to kill Rhys and “take over.” Though the reason as to why he wants to take over is uncertain, as his plan to take over Rhys’ body is flawed from a writing and character standpoint, something which is lampshaded in the final episode.

Holo-Jack also shows more response to Nisha’s murder than Handsome Jack does, and he treats her death as a genuine tragedy than an inconvenience. Though his reaction to Angel is in-line and the abuse is downplayed as it is being told through Holo-Jack’s perspective to Rhys.

The main crux of Holo-Jack’s characterization is in his developing relationship with Rhys, and thus his subsequent attempt at isolation and gaslighting of him, and focuses more on his fear of nonexistence and failure in the final episode when Rhys confronts him. Holo-Jack abandons his pride and dignity and reduces himself to begging and pleading to not be reduced into nothingness.

In contrast, Handsome Jack maintains his egocentrism and narcissism and proclaims himself as the hero still while screaming and shouting until he has nothing more to say, in which either the PCs or Lilith will kill him.

There is not much to say about Holo-Jack; he is the comic relief, occasionally shown to be menacing and terrifying, is far more emotional and reactive than Handsome Jack, but also carries some of Handsome Jack’s characteristics. Though Holo-Jack is more in-line with Handsome Jack, there is also a lot of disconnect between the two interpretations of Jack as the result of the softening of Holo-Jack’s character to make him more marketable and appealing to the PCs.

* * *

_**Overall,** _

* * *

Handsome Jack as a character suffers from a constant change in character presentation, most presumably in part thanks to rotating writers and the teams that develop the games with him as a main attraction. 

With his original appearance in _Borderlands 2_ having him be a frankly dark and menacing character whose blow is lessened by the normally comic tone of the game and every appearance afterwards trying to soften him up, another aspect at play can be the marketability of the character.

The purpose of this text is not meant to insult people who enjoy all incarnations of Handsome Jack, nor is it meant to claim any superiority. The purpose of this text is to merely talk about and discuss a personal opinion and interpretation of Jack’s constant change in personality, and the issues of characterization as a result of it. 

As the one who wrote this text, Holo-Jack and Programmer Jack are still enjoyable in their own rights, though Handsome Jack is the most enjoyable and interesting of all interpretations.

If you have read this far, thank you, and I appreciate you staying this far in spite of the length of this informal and personal text.

**Author's Note:**

> [You can find this post on pillowfort](https://www.pillowfort.social/posts/819638)
> 
> [You can also find this post on tumblr](https://smt4flynn.tumblr.com/post/632916258342453248/an-extremely-informal-text-on-handsome-jack)


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